8th February, 2022
Mrs Patience Key, 2023 a presidential aspirant on the platform of Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) has unveiled some of the programmes that she will pursue in office if she is elected.
Key pledged to tackle insecurity and provide free education for the benefit of Nigerians by implementing the party’s “redemption strategies” in an interview with NAN in New York.
She added that she would use the same redemption strategies of the party to tackle poverty, overhaul the Nigerian police, digitalise policing and form a strategic collaboration with various community and religious leaders, among others.
“Patience Key intends to enhance peace in Nigeria by first tackling poverty which is a remote cause of the various security deficits that have caused humongous challenges for economic growth in Nigeria.
“In view of these challenges, to achieve peace and stability, Patience Key will collaborate with neighbouring countries where most of the problems emanated from; this move will reduce the movement of arms in various border areas into Nigeria.
“The overhauling of the Nigerian police and military remains very significant, proper auditing and funding of units working directly against insurgents and extremists are not left out.’’
Key, the immediate past Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Organiations (NIDO), Americas, USA, said as president, she would increase the budgetary allocation to the educational sector from the current 5.6 per cent to a minimum of 20 per cent.
She described quality and functional education as a catalyst for national development, an enabler of wealth, and a veritable means of empowerment the citizens.
“We shall strive to reduce to the barest minimum, the number of out-of-school children by creating and enforcing legislation that would make it compulsory for parents/guardians to send their children/wards to school at least up to the secondary level of education.
“We shall pay special attention to encouraging girl-child education, especially in Northern Nigeria.
“We shall promptly commence a thorough review of the nation’s academic curriculum to bring it at par with that of other developed nations.
“Special attention shall be given to the recruitment, training, and retraining of school teachers, along with salary increase and other incentives to keep them motivated,’’ the aspirant said.
She said her focus as president would also be to strengthen the intelligence gathering system and appropriately deploy ICT to guarantee the safety of human and material resources at all academic institutions.
“This will ensure that the tragedy of abduction of schoolchildren by terrorists becomes a thing of the past in Nigeria,’’ she added.
The aspirant said as president, she would address the infrastructural deficit identified as the most challenging factor in doing business in Nigeria.
“The United Nations forecasts that by 2050, the population in Nigeria would almost double, going beyond 400 million and making Nigeria the third most populous nation in the world.
“Hence, we must commence rapid infrastructural development, reaching even the remotest parts of the country to minimise rural-urban migration and other social malaise associated with over-population.
“Nigeria’s infrastructural deficit is so massive that it should not be dependent on yearly budgetary allocations.
“Robust critical infrastructure has the potential to increase productivity, which would ultimately alleviate poverty, enhance job creation, facilitate trade, and promote innovation in the economy,’’ she said.
Key had on Nov. 23, 2021, declared her intention to run for the office of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.